Castle Rock VS Monument (Denver, Colorado Springs: rental, house, good schools)

[khar591]

We are relocating from another state and entertaining these two areas....we have a 4 year old and 7 year old. Both areas are attractive for different reasons. Any input with regards to schools, kid's sports and activities, community etc. would be greatly appreciated! Thank you so much!

[bluescreen73]

Originally Posted by khar591

We are relocating from another state and entertaining these two areas....we have a 4 year old and 7 year old. Both areas are attractive for different reasons. Any input with regards to schools, kid's sports and activities, community etc. would be greatly appreciated! Thank you so much!

Where will you be working? If it's in the Springs you'll want Monument, if Denver, then Castle Rock. Driving over Monument Hill in the winter can be a pain in a blizzard.

[headingtoDenver]

My wife and I just bought a house in Castle Rock (No Kids) and we absolutely love it. Our neighbors have kids and they have been there since 2006. Our house was built in 2006 so they have been there since it was built and they have no desire to move at this point. We live in the area called The Meadows. They have a website so you can google them for more information. The Meadows have their own events throughout the year such as 4th of July fireworks which is an all day event. They just had their own Easter egg hunt for the kids. Our neighbors say that the schools are decent. I have to take their word for it since we don't have any kids of our own. There are also a lot of parks with sports fields on them and there are people constantly out there playing. Unfortunately, I cannot do a direct comparison because I've only been down to monument a couple of times and that was when we drove through while heading to Colorado Springs.

[khar591]

Thank you taking the time to respond - all information is greatly appreciated!! My husband will be working in the tri-lakes area but we have family in Westminster and Ft. Collins (but they are not familiar with the area south of Denver). I've heard Monument hill is a terrible drive in the winter, but I would think they keep I25 pretty clear and sanded??? Castle Rock seems to have more community things to offer and in Monument you can get more land but both seem to have pretty good schools. It is so hard to decide while in another state but we are making rental decision now and hoping our house will sell here in Oregon soon!

[otterprods]

I live just outside monument proper and go to castle rock often. Castle rock offers more of everything since its a bigger suburb of denver compared to a bedroom community for springs. But the schools and activities are good enough for both that you should let the location of your job be the deciding factor and avoid a daily commute over the pass if possible.

[hollyt00]

Seems like every time there is a snowstorm somehow there's an accident on Monument Hill.

[lurtsman]

I really like both of those areas. I'm not sure which area I like better. Given that your husband's job is in tri-lakes, I would easily pick monument. It would have been a tossup without know where he was going to be working, but I would easily let that decide the location with the occasional winter storms we get. I've been around the school system in monument, and it seemed good to me. I don't have kids, but if I did, I would be happy to send them there. I haven't visited the one in Castle Rock.

[CharlotteRJ]

Don't count on decent snow removal, even on the interstate. I moved here all smug about snow, having grown up in Wisconsin, but I would hate to have to commute over Monument Hill in a storm. Live in Monument. The schools are great.

[otterprods]

Reports of monument hill becoming a treacherous mess each time it snows are much exaggerated. However, the fact that so many drivers THINK it's so scary tends to make it so. So if he works in tri lakes choose monument over castle rock. Our schools are as good as any but not perfect.

[BillRadio]

There are other considerations.

Monument, being part of the heavily military-influenced area is more conservative. It is higher in altitude, a bit colder, and more cloudy & rainy. Monument does not have a central "town", you'll need to drive for shopping. While the weather is different, there is less of a contrast for most of the year.

Castle Rock is more family-oriented, but is noticeably less conservative. Yes, I-25 CAN be that bad as you approach Monument Hill. Sure, they can plow and sand, but there are so many people in the area that have purchased their SUV (or 4X4 truck) and feel they have the God-given right to travel at 80 MPH no matter what the weather. This leads to spectacular crashes, even in dry weather. There are alternatives to I-25.

I don't agree about the schools. Douglas County (Castle Rock) schools have far more resources than the smaller districts to the south.

Why not rent for 6 months? Randomly choose 1 and shop & dine in the other. You just might like to be closer to the Springs which is more scenic than Denver, but less so than Castle Rock.